Knife to meet you
by DaughteroftheRedKing
Summary: Yuri's in trouble, and Flynn's there to help. But maybe they've both bitten off more than they can chew this time...? (UA - Universe Alteration), NOT YAOI! Because we have way too much Fluri on this site, and not enough brotherly relationship) (Rated T because it's pretty bloody.) Chapter 2 is sequel - Scars of the Past, Memories of the Wounded. Chapter 3 is final part - Ghosts.
1. Knife to Meet you

**A/N: Corny jokes ahoy!**

**Well, the title is the only one, really. Anyway, not sure why I decided to write this, just thought it was an interesting idea.**

**It can take place at whatever time you wish, so long as it's after the beginning and before the end of the game :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Vesperia. It belongs to the Namco Bandai people or something.**

**Enjoy the weirdness!**

* * *

The clash of metal on metal rang out along the streets, lost in the silence of the alleys and the darkness of night. It was too late for anyone to be awake, and the fighters knew that. It was why the attackers had chosen this time.

Yuri gritted his teeth, blocking a sword, ducking under another and leaping back as an axe slammed into the place he had been standing a second before. He was definitely outmatched, seven men attacking him together and another five waiting in the wings. Repede lay against the wall, injured and unable to fight, but Yuri was glad. It wasn't a fight they could win, and he didn't want to risk Repede in it.

More swords came hammering at him, and he barely managed to block as he pushed them away, panting heavily. He couldn't keep this up much longer...if only...

His enemies took his momentary lapse in concentration as an advantage, one of them breaking through Yuri's guard. Yuri barely had time to gasp before the sword slammed through his side and into the wall behind him, pinning him there.

He stood there for a moment, face screwed up in pain. The men sensed their advantage and continued attacking. Yuri managed to block a few, then one batted away his sword as another flew at him, this time into his shoulder, joining the other in the wall. Yuri gave a pained yell, sweat running down his brow. His sword slid from his grasp, hitting the floor with a dull clang.

"Finish it," the guild's leader ordered, and the men grinned before bringing their swords forward.

* * *

Flynn had been walking down to Yuri's room, deciding to be the one to give his friend a surprise visit, when he heard fighting. Frowning, he hurried towards the noise, glad he'd decided to bring his sword along.

He heard whoever it was give a yell, and felt his heart skip a beat. That sounded like...

Rounding the corner, he saw the men leap at Yuri, who was pinned against the wall. A moment later he was there, standing in front of Yuri and protecting him from any further attacks.

The men stumbled back, surprised at the sudden entrance of the blond.

"And _what _do you think you're doing?" Flynn growled, eyes glittering dangerously. The men hesitated, looking towards their leader.

The man eyed him, and Flynn recognized him as a guild leader. The guild itself had a reputation for getting the job of assassins, murdering their victims without fail.

_'What have you gotten yourself into this time, Yuri?'_ he thought to himself as he clutched his sword tighter.

The leader gazed at him a moment longer, then looked away. "Kill him," he replied, giving a wave of his hand. The men gave vicious grins, looking back at Flynn and Yuri, then surged forward. Flynn was taken aback by their ferociousness, and struggled to hold them back.

_'How did Yuri last so long against these guys?!' _he cried in his mind, blocking one, then two, then three, four, five...He could barely keep up, only just managing to keep them off Yuri even as they forced him to back up towards his best friend.

Yuri cracked his eyes open, gazing at Flynn. "F-Flynn.." he mumbled.

"Shut up! I'm trying to help and you're distracting me!" Flynn snapped. Block, block, lunge, block, block, block, block, swipe, step forward, block, lunge, backward, block, block, block, backward, block block block block block...

It was endless. There were too many. Flynn could see that this fight was not going to end well. Gritting his teeth, he put more effort into it, determined to save Yuri. Suddenly he spotted an opening; his eyes widened in surprise but he took it, lunging forward. The man he was aiming at gave a grin then jumped back, and Flynn stumbled, straightening and bringing his sword up to block...

The sword went through his lower side, throwing him back against Yuri. He felt Yuri buck under him as the sword went through his side as well, then slammed into the wall. Through pure force of will, Flynn held back a cry, keeping a steady hold on his sword as he raised it to protect himself and Yuri.

The men glanced at their leader, who grinned. "Do it," he ordered. Flynn barely had time to wonder what 'do it' meant when suddenly someone grabbed his wrist, forcing him to drop his sword. They grabbed Yuri's as well, raising them so that they were spread out. Flynn struggled against their hold, certain whatever they were about to do was not good, then watched as another man stepped forward, drawing a knife. His eyes widened as he realized what was happening, and he fought harder, but another man grabbed his wrist as well, forcing his palm flat.

The man holding the knife glanced at the two boys, seeing the fear and anger in Flynn's eyes, and grinned. He raised the knife, plunging it into their hands.

Both boys gave a strangled yell, and the men holding their wrists let go. The knife, like the swords, were embedded deeply into the wall, and every time Flynn tried to move his hand it just hurt more and jostled Yuri's as well, causing the purple-head pain that he wanted to spare him.

Flynn went to reach up and pull the knife out, when his other wrist was grabbed and forced against the wall. He felt Yuri stiffen beneath him and knew that he had similarly reacted. He jerked against the hand holding him, and felt another strong pair wrap themselves around his wrist, forcing it back.

The man with the knife came forward again, shooting the boys a nasty grin. Yuri buried his head into Flynn's shoulder, body shaking, but Flynn resorted to glaring at the man, determined not to be cowed.

"_Flynn..._" Yuri whispered.

"It's okay. I'm here," Flynn replied just as quietly, feeling Yuri's head sink further into his shoulder.

The knife plunged into their hands, and Yuri screamed. Flynn clamped his mouth shut, closing his eyes. He felt tears rise beneath his lids, his body silently begging to be released from the pain.

"What should we do now boss?" one of the men said. Flynn wasn't sure which one.

"Leave them. They'll die soon, and it's unlikely anyone will find them before then."

There was a chorus of agreeal, then the sound of footsteps moving off. Flynn waited until he was sure they were gone, cracking his eyes open slightly to double check, then allowed the tears to run down his cheeks. He gave a soft gasp of pain, his body writhing slightly.

He opened his eyes, wishing he could wipe away the tears, but the pain in his hands was enough to stop him. He glanced down, noting the other two swords that were buried in Yuri, and felt his heart break. Even if he survived, Yuri was in a lot of pain, and losing much more blood quicker. If they weren't found soon, they'd both be dead.

"Yuri," Flynn murmured. The purple-head didn't move, but Flynn knew he had his attention. He sighed, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault.." Yuri mumbled, raising his head slightly. His forehead touched Flynn's neck, and Flynn nearly withdrew as he felt the fever. Another factor that would only contribute to Yuri's quick demise.

"You've got to hang on, okay? Promise me, Yuri," Flynn said strongly.

Yuri viewed him with heavy lidded eyes, then lowered his head back into Flynn's shoulder. "I'll try," he replied quietly.

As they practically hung there, their blood seeping out and bodies becoming more and more unresponsive, Flynn found himself listing the various different reasons Yuri could die. It was long, too long, and Flynn was certain there was no way Yuri could survive. Listing his own, he found it wasn't as long, but certainly wasn't good.

Slowly numbness spread along his body, and he leaned his head back against the wall. Yuri raised his eyes slightly, gazing at him, proving that he was still alive. Flynn gave him a tight and tired smile, then closed his eyes, feeling the coldness spreading along his arms.

The sun was rising, hitting their faces. Yuri screwed up his eyes slightly, burying his head to shade them from the light, but Flynn stared up at sky, watching as it changed from a dark blue to the light blue he preferred. He heard noises as people woke up and started with their business.

Slowly, Yuri sagged against Flynn's back. "F-Flynn...I can't..."

"Just try to hang on, Yuri," Flynn murmured, but fear gripped him. He knew that if Yuri died at this point, he wouldn't be able to hang on. His own eyes were becoming heavy, the coldness that settled over him beckoning him to sleep.

He heard the clatter of metal and opened his eyes slightly, raising his head as a group of knights ran down the alley, passing the one they were stuck in. One glanced down it, maybe some of Flynn's armour catching the light, and froze.

"Over here! Captain Flynn and Yuri Lowell are over here!" he yelled to the others, and they turned back, hurrying down the alley towards them. The yell rang out over the Lower Quarter, people hurrying towards the area.

Sodia pushed her way forward, her breath catching at the sight of them, then steeled herself.

"We'll get you out, sir," she said strongly.

"Help Yuri first," he ordered. She hesitated, then nodded.

"Of course sir," she agreed. Flynn sighed in relief, his head sinking against Yuri's and eyes closing as he allowed sleep to claim him.

* * *

There was no other way to describe it; everyone panicked. The knights rushed around, shouting orders and counter orders, as the citizens screamed and yelled at each other in fear.

"Everybody calm down!" Sodia shouted, and slowly the sound died. They looked at her, and she gritted her teeth. "We need to get Captain Flynn and Yuri Lowell down carefully, without injuring them further. We then need to heal their wounds and get them up to the castle for further treatment. Understood?" The knights nodded. "Alright. I need some of you to come here and help me get these weapons out."

The operation was slow going, stopping completely any time the two boys showed any sign of pain. Finally they had removed the weapons and lowered them to the floor. Several healers came forward, casting various healing arts to try and heal the wounds.

"Let's get them up to the castle! Hurry!" Sodia yelled, and the group moved off, leaving a fearful crowd of citizens in its wake.

* * *

It hurt. It _hurt._ He wanted it to stop hurting, and he knew that if he just allowed that darkness to consume him, it would. But something held him back. He'd promised...promised that he would hang on. So he struggled against the darkness, instinctively knowing that his other was doing the same, fighting against that all compassing darkness which would gobble them up at the first chance.

He opened his eyes slowly, allowing them to roam the ceiling as he tried to figure out where he was. Blinking a couple of times, he realized he was within the castle's infirmary. The horrific events of the other night came back, and he closed his eyes as the memories washed over him. Reliving every moment, he gave a whimper, and felt a hand on his forehead. Gently it brushed away a few stray hairs, and he opened his eyes, meeting Estelle's concerned gaze.

"Ah, Yuri! You're awake," she said in relief, smiling.

Yuri gazed at her a moment, then his eyes slid over to the bed beside his. He spotted the familiar figure lying in it, and felt his heart clench.

"F-Flynn...is he...?"

"He's alright. He wasn't as bad as you were." Estelle's gaze grew worried. "You really scared us, Yuri. Your heart stopped a couple of times, but we managed to use the Blastia to get it going again."

Yuri stared at her a moment, then glanced away. "...Sorry," he mumbled.

Estelle smiled. "Don't worry; it's not your fault." Then she frowned, gently taking his hand. He flinched, and she let go. "You'll have scars. We couldn't fully heal them," she murmured sadly.

Yuri gazed at her a moment, then looked away. "It's not your fault. Thanks for trying."

"Yuri, we should really tell the others..."

"No. Please, Estelle, don't tell anyone else."

Estelle looked at him, seeing the pain in his eyes, and knew it was as much so that he didn't have to relive the memories as it was for his pride.

"What about Flynn?"

"Especially Flynn."

She knew why. The two of them had a bond that went beyond anything she had ever seen. They were closer than blood brothers, almost seeming like twins. To tell Flynn that Yuri had almost died, and likewise, seeing as Flynn's heart had stopped once too, would be for them to confront the fact that they had nearly lost the most precious person to them. It wasn't something they could take without breaking down inside. So she backed down.

"..Alright," she murmured.

* * *

Yuri was staring listlessly at the ceiling when he heard movement. Turning his head, he watched Flynn open his eyes and look around in confusion.

"Hey, glad you've joined us," Yuri said with a smile. Flynn glanced at him, his eyes relaxing as he saw that Yuri was awake and well.

"Glad to be back," he replied, sitting up and wincing as he put pressure on his wounded hands.

"You probably shouldn't. When I tried, they shoved me back down and knocked me out for an hour. Definitely not trying that again."

Flynn took Yuri's advice and quickly lay back down, instead turning over so he could see his friend easier. The paleness of Yuri's skin spoke volumes, the darkness in his eyes and the tired bangs under them saying the rest. It had been a furious, pain-staking battle that Yuri had nearly lost with Death.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Better. Much better than before, certainly."

Although it sounded like he was referring to when he first woke up, Flynn knew he was actually talking about when they were still pinned by the blades. He shoved the memories away, not wanting to remember the bleak, defeated feeling that had entered him back then. They were both alive, and would soon be well, and that was enough.

"I hope you aren't thinking about your work," Yuri cut through his thoughts, and Flynn groaned as he immediately thought about it.

"I'm going to have so much to do..." he sighed.

"Just get your faithful second-in-command to do it or something," Yuri said with a wave of his hand.

Flynn sighed. "Just because you shirk your responsibilities," he muttered.

Yuri grinned. "But shirking them is such fun!"

"It's not when they build up. Just you wait Yuri; one day you'll have lots of paperwork to do as well, and then you won't be laughing at me anymore," Flynn warned.

"No, I'm pretty sure I still will be," Yuri replied, shrugging, before laughing at Flynn's expression.

For now, the experience could be pushed away and put behind them.

* * *

**A/N: I'm planning to do a sequel to this at some point (probably later tonight). It's been spellchecked but not beta'd, so if you have any suggestions for how I could change it, please PM or leave a review! I love hearing back from people (as long as it isn't flames). Some of this may not be correct or impossible or just plain weird, but hey, that's how I write!**

**Also, apparently 'agreeal' isn't a word, but it was the only thing that fit, so just ignore that for now.**

**Review?**


	2. Memories of the Past, Scars of the Wound

**A/N: Hey guys! Another one-shot, ToV style!**

**So, this is actually a sequel to 'Knife to meet you', and I may actually make ****_another _****sequel (to this one) about this again!**

**This one isn't very bloody or anything, not nearly as violent as 'Knife to meet you' (and I would recommend reading that one if you want to read this one considering it makes no sense otherwise).**

**Also, I wrote half of this just after 'Knife to meet you', then left it alone for a few months and finished it off last night, so if they get really OOC in the middle (somewhere around where Flynn and Yuri are being emo), I'm really sorry!**

_**Edit:**_** I decided to move this onto _Knife to meet you_ as I'm probably going to be uploading a lot of one-shots about Vesperia and other stuff in the future, and I figured it'd be easier it this was with the thing it was related to. Sorry if that inconveniences anyone!**

* * *

Yuri sat lounging on the grass outside the inn, staring up at the sky. He could hear the voices of Karol and Rita as they argued from here, and sighed. Estelle was probably in over her head a little, and without Judith and Raven there to keep them in check, it would likely get out of hand quickly.

Yawning, he stretched before sitting up, blinking blearily. A shadow blocked out the sun and he looked up, squinting against the light that threw their face in shadows.

"Oh, Flynn. I was wondering who you were for a moment," Yuri greeted, grinning.

"Why am I not surprised to find you slacking off, Lowell?" Flynn sighed.

"I'm hurt Flynn. I thought you had more faith in me than that."

Flynn shook his head, watching as Yuri stood and brushed the grass off.

"So, is this a pleasant visit, or do you need to talk to me?" Yuri asked.

"I am receiving complaints from people within the inn and surrounding neighbours that your group is causing a disruption. Please refrain from disturbing everybody and get them back under control," Flynn rolled off.

"Well, I was actually about to do that before you showed up. Now, if you don't mind..."

"Watch out!"

They looked up at Estelle's startled cry just as water was dumped all over them. Rita and Karol, who had hurried to the edge, barely held back their laughter.

"S-Sorry Yuri!" Rita called down, giggling.

"Are you alright?" Estelle asked worriedly.

Yuri shook his hands, trying to get the water off them, then brushed his hair back from his face. "Super," he replied sarcastically.

Flynn pushed his sopping hair back, imitating Karol's usual hairstyle, only wetter and less neat. "We are fine, Lady Estellise," he assured her.

Yuri looked up at Rita and Karol, who were still giggling uncontrollably, and stomped inside. He ignored the innkeeper's protests of getting the carpet wet and made his way upstairs to the room they were staying in.

"Dry us off. Now," he said curtly to Rita. With a great effort she stopped herself from laughing, trying to keep a straight face but failing miserably.

"Sure, if you like being burnt to a crisp."

"Then dry off our shirts at least."

"Just step out of it then," she said, waiting. Flynn came into the room behind him, looking around.

"You really should get yourselves dried off. We don't want you to get ill," Estelle said, mothering over them.

"Sure. Why don't you guys just step outside," Yuri said, standing aside so that they could go out.

"Why? You're only taking your shirts off, and it's not like you never reveal your chest to the world anyway," Rita pointed out, rolling her eyes.

"Rita.."

"What! I'm serious, you can't have a good reason for this."

"Maybe he's shy?" Karol suggested. Yuri groaned, face-palming as Rita burst out into laughter again.

"Thanks Karol," Yuri sighed.

"What? What did I say?" he asked, a little confused.

"Aw, are you shy? Don't want to show off your manly muscles to the world?" Rita teased.

"Miss Mordio, it is much more complicated than that..." Flynn tried.

"You too? Oh this is priceless! Two cute little children, don't want to show off their chests to the world!" Rita fell back, laughing.

"Estelle, did you do the cooking?" asked Yuri.

"Yes, why?"

"Did Rita try any?"

"Yes.."

"Well, that explains that."

"So come on! Are you going to take off your shirt or not?" Rita asked, still giggling.

"I've already told you, once you leave the room."

"Nope. I'm staying right here," she replied smugly.

"Miss Mordio, I must insist that you leave.." Flynn tried again.

"Forget it Flynn," Yuri sighed, reaching for his shirt.

"But Yuri.."

Yuri ignored him, lifting his shirt up and pulling it off. Rita fell silent, and Karol's eyes widened.

Yuri threw his shirt to the side, scowling. "Flynn, you too."

Flynn hesitated then sighed, taking off the various bits of armour then slipping out of his shirt. Their gazes flickered to him, immediately seeking out the markings.

The scars were white, even paler than the boys' skin. As Rita gazed at them, mentally taking them and placing them next to each other, she paled.

"What happened?" she asked, voice husky.

Yuri didn't reply, instead moving off, and they flinched as they saw the scars on his back as well.

"No point hiding these either," he muttered, pulling off his gloves and throwing them on top of the two shirts. Estelle averted her gaze from the scars, feeling tears building as she remembered how they had been found, the condition they had been in, and the absolute horror Zaphias had felt.

Karol padded over, looking at up at the scars. Yuri didn't look at him, acting as if he wasn't there.

"Yuri, what happened? Why do you have these?" he asked, gently touching one.

"That's...not something I want to talk about."

Rita walked over, gently touching the scars and evaluating them. "These got infected a little...deep, went straight through...tried healing itself but couldn't..." Looking over at Flynn, she evaluated his scars, eyes calculating. Then suddenly she paled, eyes widening. "Oh.."

"What? Rita, what is it?" asked Karol. He seemed to be the only one who didn't know what was going on.

"I'm not sure what happened, but...they got attacked and a weapon - which I assume was a sword - was stabbed into them. Yuri has two extra, so he was probably attacked first, and then Flynn must have joined in or something. The next one went through Flynn..and through Yuri at the same time."

As Karol imagined this, he suddenly went pale. "Oh."

"By the scars on Yuri's hands, I'll assume there are also some on Flynn's, and.."

"That's enough, Rita," Estelle said suddenly, and the mage trailed off. Both boys' eyes were distant, gazing at something no one else could see, and Rita found herself standing there awkwardly.

Karol gazed, a little worried, at his role-model. Yuri's face was filled with anger and fear at the same time, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know what had happened, now.

"...Yuri?" he asked quietly, reaching for his wrist.

Yuri jerked his hand away violently, coal black eyes staring at Karol in fear. Inwardly, Karol shivered; though those eyes did not seem to be looking at him, rather seeing something else, they were still frightening.

Finally there was movement as Flynn gently padded over to Yuri. His eyes were still dark, but it looked like whatever he had been reliving was over.

"Yuri...Come on," he murmured, gently tapping his wrist. Unlike with Karol, Yuri accepted the touch, letting out a pent-up breath before turning to gaze at the blonde knight.

"...Right. Rita, dry them off," Yuri said curtly, following Flynn to a separate room. Karol made to follow them, but Estelle kept him back.

"It's better if you just leave them alone for the moment," she said quietly, her green eyes troubled.

Rita looked over at the pink-haired princess. "What the hell happened?" she asked, her tone bordering on anger.

Estelle sighed. "It's not my place to tell you, and we don't know that much, anyway. It's unlikely they'll ever tell you, either, so please...Just let the matter go. I have no doubt that it's not something either of them wants to ever think about again."

Rita glanced back at the door, then shook her head. "They should have died from wounds like those," she pointed out.

Estelle nodded. "They almost did. It's a miracle in itself, especially considering how long..." She trailed off, obviously feeling she had imparted more information than she should have.

"How long what?" Karol asked, not quite catching on. When Estelle didn't reply, Rita frowned.

"How long what, Estelle?"

Estelle hesitated for a moment, then hung her head. "How long...they were..stuck on the wall..."

Rita was suddenly struck with an image that made her shiver; swords piercing their bodies, pinned against a wall, left for dead by whoever it was...

"What? I don't get it," Karol said, frowning.

Rita shook her head. "Drop it, Karol. This isn't something we should be sticking out noses in," she said quietly.

"Huh? What do you mean, Rita?"

Rita gave him a flat glare, and he recoiled slightly.

"I said_ drop it_."

* * *

**A/N: So, angst seems to be my speciality! Don't ask me why, I'm just reeeally bad at fluff.**

**And I know Rita seems a little hyper at the beginning...I don't even know why. Apparently, Estelle's cooking makes Rita hyper 0_0**

**If I do write a sequel, it will probably be about how they meet the guys who did it in Dahngrest... *evil chuckle***

**Review?**


	3. Ghosts

**A/N: The final installment of my gruesome three-shot! Hope you enjoy! (Bit more action in this one)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Vesperia. It belongs to Namco Bandai, though I am not the proud owner of a copy of the game! *YAY!***

* * *

"Ah man, I love being in Dahgrest!" Karol said happily, stretching.

"You would," said Rita, rolling her eyes.

Karol pouted up at her, then looked at Yuri. "But it's good being back, don't you think?"

"Yeah. Dahngrest's like a second home," Yuri said with a grin.

"I do hope this meeting goes well..." Estelle murmured, sighing.

"You'll do fine, Estelle! You can get everyone to love you if you try hard enough," Yuri said. Then he smirked. "Even a certain uptight knight," he murmured.

"That's enough out of you, Lowell," Flynn snapped, and Yuri laughed.

"You're no fun, Flynn! I'll never understand what Estelle sees in you."

Estelle blushed while Karol snickered and Rita sighed.

"A-Anyway, Karol, why don't you lead the way? You're meant to be representing us, after all," Estelle said. Karol nodded, going forward slightly so that he was at the front even though they all knew the way.

Yuri was doing his customary sweeps of the crowd when Repede suddenly growled. He looked down at the dog, who had gone still and was intently focused on something to the right of them.

Yuri stopped as well, looking around for whatever Repede had spotted. The others also paused, looking back.

"What's the matter, Yuri?" asked Karol.

"I'm not sure...Something's really got to Repede, otherwise he wouldn't be reacting this badly," he replied, not quite sure what Repede was looking at.

Flynn placed a hand on his sword as he came back slightly, also searching. His cursory sweep suddenly caught a familiar face and he looked back, quickly finding them again. He frowned, wondering why they were familiar when he couldn't remember who they were...

The person seemed to notice him staring and looked up, meeting his gaze, before sneering. They nudged someone next to them and nodded at him, and Flynn's gaze automatically flickered to the other man.

Yuri caught sight of him at the same time as Flynn did, and they froze up instantly. The heavily built man stood up, hefting a large axe over one shoulder as he started walking forward, a little crowd following behind him.

The man approached them, ignoring Repede's loud barking and angry snarls. He stopped infront of them, raising an eyebrow.

"So, you're still alive? Surprised you survived. Must have the devil's luck."

Yuri swallowed, taking a hesitant step back as Flynn's grip on his sword handle tightened. Neither of them were able to tear their gazes away from the man's face.

"I hope you realise though, I have to finish the job. Can't easily accept money for a job I haven't finished. Nothing personal," the man said with a shrug before nodding to the other men around him.

They quickly surged forward, their swords drawn. The boys looked down at them, too numbed to react to them.

There was the clash of metal on metal as the others leapt infront of them, pushing the men back. Repede remained near the two of them, attacking anyone who got too close for his liking.

"What are you just standing there for?! Help us!" snapped Rita, dodging an attack.

The two boys blinked before snapping out of it, finally drawing their weapons. As they were about to join in the fighting, a figure blocked their way.

"No. Let's make this a fair fight. You two against me," the leader said, bringing his axe infront of him.

Repede snarled and leapt forward, attacking him, but he easily threw the dog back.

"Repede!" Yuri cried as Repede hit a wall with a yelp, sinking to the ground and lying there dizzily.

Suddenly the leader attacked. The two boys quickly raised their swords, only just deflecting his attack. He quickly swung it back, and Yuri raised his sword, stumbling as the full force hit into his guard. He and Flynn began to back away, still blocking shots.

Flynn stumbled slightly as his back hit the wall, and he glanced back briefly before Yuri bumped into him as well, whacking his head against the wall with a muffled, "Owww..."

"Let's try reawakening some memories, shall we?" the leader suggested before he drew a sword, slamming it at them before they could guard.

It pierced Yuri's side then Flynn's, before lodging itself deeply into the wall. The two boys screamed, only just managing to keep a grip on their swords.

"Are you two trying to be tough? Let's see how loud you can actually scream," the leader murmured, before applying pressure to the sword and forcing it further in. The boys writhed, pained cries echoed by each other going around the clearing.

"Yuri! Flynn!" shouted Estelle, batting one man down only for him to be replaced by another.

The leader finally stopped as the sword hilt touched Yuri's body. He smiled at the blood dripping from the wounds onto the floor, then lifted his axe.

"I imagine death would be a lovely reprieve for you now, wouldn't it?" he said, placing it beside their necks. Neither boy responded, their eyes dark and empty.

The leader shrugged, bringing the axe back before swinging it forward.

Suddenly he stiffened before collapsing as two blades pierced his body, both hitting his heart. Estelle drew back slightly, panting, while Repede gave a low growl. Estelle quickly sheathed her sword, rushing over to the two boys.

"Flynn? Yuri? Can you hear me?" she asked, gazing at them. Neither replied, and Estelle's worry grew. "We're going to get this out of you, okay? Just hang on," she promised, before turning. "Karol!" she called.

The boy hurried over, glancing hesitantly at Yuri and Flynn before looking at Estelle. "What do you need?" he asked.

"I need you to go get some strong people to help pull the sword out, then some healers to heal the wounds, okay?"

"Got it," Karol replied, hurrying away.

Rita crossed over, standing beside Estelle.

"...This is like what happened before, isn't it?" she murmured.

Estelle nodded. "There...there were more swords than this, but...None were this deep, either..." She bit her lip, rubbing a palm against her cheek as she tried to stop the tears rising. They escaped her, however, and she shook slightly as the tears streamed down her face.

A hand touched her cheek, and she glanced up before blinking. Flynn panted heavily, but a gentle smile touched his lips as he gently brushed away the tears from her face.

"...Don't cry. We're not..going to die," he promised.

"Hah..you're too stubborn...to die," Yuri replied, glancing back at him before grimacing as the sword was jostled slightly.

"I got them!" Karol called. Several people followed behind him, a mixture of muscly men and people wearing healing robes.

The men gathered around the sword, eyeing it. "Aye, this is bad. We're gonna have to pull it out in one go if we want the healers to heal you before you bleed to death," one of them said, looking at the boys.

"Will it hurt?" asked Yuri. They nodded solemnly, and they took a deep breath before Flynn nodded.

"Do it."

The men reached out to grasp the handle, the healers standing by. Estelle reached out and grasped one of their hands each. The two boys glanced at her in surprise before Flynn smiled reassuringly.

"We're gonna start now," the one at the front warned, and they nodded, grasping each other's hand tightly.

As the men began to pull it back out, what felt like white hot fire burst through them. They screamed, arching, feeling the sword sliding through the wound.

"Healers! Start healing!" ordered Rita. The healers nodded and quickly chanted. A glow began to appear around the injury, slowly healing as the sword was removed.

Estelle winced as it felt like her hands were about to be crushed. She knew what they were like, and if they were doing this to her, then they must have crossed the pain threshold. She didn't known if they were even capable of trying to mask how painful it actually was.

Flynn sagged as finally the sword was removed, and a few seconds later, Yuri hit the floor infront of him. The glow around the wounds continued, healing the injuries. Finally they were fully healed, and the healers turned to the two girls and Karol.

"That's the best we can do. I'm not sure if it'll be enough," the one at the front said, biting her lip.

"Thank you. This is the best we could ask of you," Estelle said. She turned back to the boys, kneeling next to them.

"Flynn? Yuri? Are you okay?" she murmured.

The boys opened their eyes, gazing at her, then Yuri gave a cheeky grin.

"We'll...live.." he replied before passing out.

* * *

Once again, he woke up in an infirmary, except this time it appeared to be at Dahngrest. He blinked a couple of times, before pressing a hand against his side. As expected, a bandage was wrapped around it, and he sighed. Another scar to add to the collection.

"You're finally awake?" a voice asked, and he turned, grinning as he caught sight of the familiar blonde.

"You woke up before me this time? No fair," Yuri said, turning onto his uninjured side.

"As if. I've been awake most of the time," Flynn replied, turning only slightly and putting an arm underneath his head.

"Wha...how does that work?" demanded Yuri.

Flynn shrugged. "The healers said it was because the cut was deeper for you, and the sword was in for longer, so your wound was worse."

Yuri sighed, closing his eyes. "I wish I knew who ordered them to do that. Seriously."

Flynn hesitated, then sighed. "They found some documents at the headquaters," he said.

Yuri opened his eyes, frowning. This didn't sound like good news. "And?"

"It had your name on."

Yuri raised an eyebrow. Big deal.

"And 'Dead' next to it."

"Ah..right. Okay, and?"

Flynn gazed at him. "The person who hired them to kill you was Alexei."

Yuri went still, staring at him, then scowled. "Jackass. Trying to kill me even after he's dead," he muttered. Then he looked back at Flynn. "But why did that guy pay them if he knew I wasn't dead?"

Flynn shook his head. "He didn't know. I'd booked that week off, and the reason the knights even came looking was because I had scheduled a quick lesson teaching them how to fight that morning. When I didn't show up, they went looking. You were pretty much under the radar for Alexei, so he just figured that, seeing as he wasn't hearing anything about you, you were dead. He only realised after you started messing around with his plans again."

"So dumb luck saved us then..." Yuri murmured, then pressed a hand against his forehead. "I hope we never have to do something like this again. I'm fed up with people constantly trying to kill me."

"Estelle wants to get a few guards for you. She's really worried," Flynn said.

"Tell her no. I'm fine by myself, I just got caught offguard by this guy."

Flynn shrugged. "She figured you'd say that. So she's taken the liberty of having us go with you."

Yuri eyed him. "How does that work? She's a princess, someone who needs more protection than me, and you're the Commandant."

"I'm her protection. And apparently I'm going to be a mobile Commandant. I'll be going over the country keeping an eye on everyone. And there'll be someone else to take my place there. I'm thinking Schwann."

Yuri snorted. "As if. You won't get Raven taking that position and not slacking off."

"Well, we'll see," Flynn replied smugly.

"But man...we'll get to see each other 24/7. How weird is that going to be?" Yuri murmured.

"Yeah, I know...but I hope you can get used to me breathing down your neck all the time again," Flynn said.

"Oh yeah...ugh. This is going to be no fun. And you and Estelle will just be making out all over the place, and...eugh."

Flynn rolled his eyes. "You're so childish sometimes, Yuri."

Yuri shrugged. "Who cares. Ah man, I'm tired..."

"Just go sleep then. Not like I won't be here when you wake up."

"Right. Thanks for the words of comfort. Night."

"Yeah, night. It's morning you dolt."

"Shut up."

* * *

**A/N: So, how did everyone enjoy that? It was almost midnight when I wrote this (and this is considering I ****_love _****sleeping) so it might be a little all over the place.**

**The title, 'Ghosts', comes from the fact that everyone has a few ghosts in their pasts. This is about Yuri and Flynn confronting theirs! (Yup, my title actually had a meaning without being punny!)**

**Review?**


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